Monday, December 14, 2009

Distressed?? How does your's compares to Jesus's?

As Dustin pointed out, Jesus can relate to our pain and distress very well:

http://www.christiananswers.net/q-eden/edn-t018.html

Before the crucifixion, as Jesus Christ prayed in the Garden of Gesthemane, the disciple and physician Luke noted that: “And being in anguish, he prayed more earnestly, and his sweat was like drops of blood falling to the ground.” —Luke 22:44 (NKJV)This was written by the physician Luke, a well-educated man and a careful observer by profession. Luke is also the only gospel writer to mention the bloody sweat, possibly because of his interest as a physician in this rare physiological phenomenon, which spoke elequently of the intense spiritual agony Jesus was suffering… (Dr. Henry M. Morris, The Defenders Bible, arginal notes for Luke 22:44) Although this medical condition is relatively rare, according to Dr. Frederick Zugibe (Chief Medical Examiner of Rockland County, New York) it is well-known, and there have been many cases of it. The clinical term is “hematohidrosis.” “Around the sweat glands, there are multiple blood vessels in a net-like form.” Under the pressure of great stress the vessels constrict. Then as the anxiety passes “the blood vessels dilate to the point of rupture. The blood goes into the sweat glands.” As the sweat glands are producing a lot of sweat, it pushes the blood to the surface - coming out as droplets of blood mixed with sweat.

What was the source of Jesus great stress and anguish? Clearly he was in intense spiritual agony. Being the Son of God, he would have in detail everything that was about to happen to him. He knew that he was physically facing one of the most horrible forms of capital punishment there has ever been. His body was human, and he would feel everything at least as intensely as we would. Was this the source of his severe stress? It is doubtful....(read rest in the website)